The senior American commander in Afghanistan suggested Tuesday that American forces could remain in the country beyond 2014 despite President Obama’s pledge to withdraw them by then. The commander’s remarks amounted to the most emphatic signal to date that the United States military intended to secure a presence here, possibly for years.

In an interview with The New York Times, the commander, Gen. John R. Allen, avoided talking about troop levels as America begins to wind down its operations in the war on the Taliban insurgency, now 10 years old. But he said negotiations with the government of President Hamid Karzai on a strategic partnership agreement would “almost certainly” include “a discussion with Afghanistan of what a post-2014 force will look like.”

The U.S. has no interests at stake which warrant a permanent presence in Central Asia. At a time of fiscal crisis, Washington should be shedding, not adding, permanent commitments.

If the American people don't speak out, it looks like they will be stuck with endless war--we already are past the ten year point--for no good reason. It will be empire for the sake of empire.